I will vote for the Democratic presidential candidate on November 5 - no matter who it is. But I want to know right now who it will be. And for the Democrats to maximize their chance of success, the voters need to know, without delay, who it will be.
Contributors and commentators on Daily Kos are divided on who it should be. However, my unscientific analysis of diaries, and the reaction to those diaries, says the majority of people on this platform think that Biden should be the candidate. Although the “someone else” faction seems to be growing.
I have an opinion. But it seems to me that, while the identity of the candidate’s identity is obviously important, what is more critical is that there is an undisputed candidate. One all Democrats can get behind, starting now.
As it stands, the Democratic leadership cannot even agree on the process for moving beyond this uncertainty. Individual politicians, party officials, former advisers, and liberal celebrities have offered their opinions. To what end? There is a lot of noise. But no plan.
Here’s my suggestion.
The strongest argument for Biden’s candidacy is that he won the primaries and will have enough pledged delegates at the convention to easily be the nominee. If the party rules do not permit those delegates to vote for someone else, then Biden is the guy as long as he wants to be. End of story.
If Democratic leadership wants someone else, then their only course of action is to convince Biden to step down. If they want to explore that route, then the Democratic National Committee needs to decide who should have a say in the decision.
If for argument’s sake, it is the sitting Democratic Senators, Representatives, Governors, and state party chairs, send out the ballots and get them back ASAP.
If a majority want someone else besides Biden, then put together a delegation, go to the White House, and try to convince Joe to stand down. If he says “no,” the DNC must accept the decision. And go fight the real enemy - the fascist Trump and his MAGA brown shirts.
If a majority want to stick with Biden, then trumpet that news to the heavens, the media, and the citizenry. Coalesce behind the president. And go fight the real enemy - the fascist Trump and his MAGA brown shirts.
If, on the other hand, party rules allow delegates to vote for someone else, then lobby them behind the scenes. Airing Democratic dirty laundry in public achieves nothing for the party.
At this point, let me just say that if someone has a better plan, I’m all in. As long as it puts the candidate issue to bed. Tell me about it in the comments.
The good news is that the Democrats control their destiny — if they choose to.
They have almost four years of success to run on. Their policies are favored by the majority of Americans. The Republican candidate is a mentally unstable, incompetent liar with dreams of dictatorship. And the GOP is running on a platform, Project 2025, that would strip many Americans of civil and voting rights, Social Security and Medicare, clean air and water, workplace safety, the protection of the law, and every other plutocratic pipe-dream fantasized by theocratic, un-American, pro-corporate bigots.
There should be no way the Democrats lose this election. But they seem to be doing their damnedest to snatch defeat from the jaws of what should be a walk-over victory.
If the Democrats are incapable of coming up with a plan and a timeline, then the debate over Joe’s fitness for office will only hurt his standing among undecided voters and grease the skids for MAGA excess. And history will remember them as being the ditherers who did nothing while Rome burned.
The Democrats must also avoid being distracted by side issues.
It is easy for them to blame bad press for their troubles, and many do. But that is a profitless exercise. Sure, in a fair world, the media would be objective and even-handed. And the president would be picked by popular vote. But you can only play the cards you have been dealt, not the cards you wish you had been dealt.
Worse, as long as people complain about the unfairness of it all, they are not 100% focused on achievable actions that would improve their lot.
So, dear Democrats put me out of my misery. Get behind a candidate in lockstep unity. And focus your energies on the only thing that matters. Winning this goddamned election.